Phone Follow Up System

[rmasse10]

I would put them on a drip campaign out of the shoot. Just generic stuff regarding real estate, the area, yourself, etc and keep them on that for a year or until they cry uncle. We set up people on a drip, first 2 months is every 5 days, then after that once a month for a year...we get lots of people calling months later saying they are ready now to buy...

[loudog]

Calling right away is vital.

Even 30 minutes after the inquiry arrives is way too late. Waiting longer than 5 min. to make the call has a 46% lower rate of qualification than those called in less than 5 minutes. The under 5 minute response vs. the over 30 minute response decreases your chances of conversion almost 100 times! What makes the most difference is the type of inquiry it is. If it is an information request, the lead will be thankful for a quick response. If it is a registration contact, they may get a little uneasy with a fast response.

As for the big brother thing? There are responses to objection that can soften that blow.

[Susan Zanzonico]

I used to think you should wait a litte cause it might give them a weird feeling like you're watching them or something.

However, I now think its best to call them right away while they are still on your website.

[blakeeu]

No question about it.. whoever calls them first wins!!! the car industry suggests calls within 7 minutes back to web inquiries... Moving company's have services that call back in like 10 minutes.

we've had great success NOT leaving messages, that way you could call back later in the day / evening without being rude....

[rvolk75]

I think calling right away should be for someone asking a question only. If someone contacts you from your website with a question, contact them immediately.

If someone just registered to view the MLS listings, calling them right away can possibly spook them.

What do you think?

[blakeeu]

i think its totally up to each agent how they want to respond.. if the visitor gives us a phone number (which is not required) we're gonna call it.... keep in mind we also use an IVR system with our signs / flyers and call all of them back as soon as possible.

I have no problem with agents not calling prospects back... it's totally up to what your personality type is.

[GregPDX]

Lou, where do you get your stats? Good stuff to know!

Calling right away is vital.

Even 30 minutes after the inquiry arrives is way too late. Waiting longer than 5 min. to make the call has a 46% lower rate of qualification than those called in less than 5 minutes. The under 5 minute response vs. the over 30 minute response decreases your chances of conversion almost 100 times! What makes the most difference is the type of inquiry it is. If it is an information request, the lead will be thankful for a quick response. If it is a registration contact, they may get a little uneasy with a fast response.

As for the big brother thing? There are responses to objection that can soften that blow.

[loudog]

These stats came from a company that builds and sells RE CRMs (Im not going to mention the name). The data collected spanned several markets and lots of different sales styles. I got to say it is a pretty good cross section and pretty close to what I have seen here in my company.

[rvolk75]

Lou, you're just a wealth of information. Thanks for your input.

Can you or anyone else answer the question of how much time an agent spends on a phone by following this system? I know there are Realtors/Brokers who follow the "2 leads per day" system, so I would really appreciate if someone can let me know how much an agent spends on a phone after following this system after 3-4 months.

[SCP]

I think calling right away should be for someone asking a question only. If someone contacts you from your website with a question, contact them immediately.

If someone just registered to view the MLS listings, calling them right away can possibly spook them.

What do you think?

Calling a lead shortly after filling out a form makes a lot of sense. The lead is telling you to call them. In my experience, calling them right after they register has been meet with less success. Most of the time the lead is startled and spends more time "commenting" about why they had to register on your site than anything else.